Automatic mail and package carrier.



c. A. LOWE 8 J. 0. ATKINSON.

AUTOMATIC MAIL AND PACKAGE CARRIER.

Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

. 4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

APPLIUATION FILED DEC. 13, 1910.

c. A. LOWE & J. c. ATKiNSON.

. AUTOMATIC MAIL AND PACKAGE CARRIER.

APPLICATION FILED 1030.13, 1910.

z fi. N m ,v H an I va 90H AH flZ w n 6 7 Am w d m4 w R UM m P G. A.LOWE & J. G. ATKINSON.

AU' OMATIG MAIL AND PAGKAGE CARRIER. APPLIOATIOILIILED DEC. 13, 1910.

G.v A. LOWE & J. G. ATKINSON. AUTOMATIC MAIL AND PACKAGE CARRIER.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.'13, 1910.

Patented Aug. 13; 1912.

4 snnn'rsanziinv UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHESTER A. LOWE AND JOHN C. ATKINSON, 0F CLARINGTON, OHlIO.

AUTOMATIC MAIL AND PACKAGE CARRIER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

Application filed December 13, 1910. Serial No. 597,034.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, CHESTER A. Lowe and JOHNC. ArnrNsoN, citizens of the United States, residing at Clarington. inthe county of Monroe and State of Ohio, have invented,new and usefulImprove ments in Automatic Mail and Package C'ar riers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The present invention provides a carrier system particularly designedfor use in rural districts for delivering mail, packages, or parcels.

In its specific adaptation the invention provides means for deliveringmail to residents in sparsely settled districts or to. transmit mailfrom a station to the post oiiice'or other point of distribution, saidsystem er. 1 i212" bodylng a carrier which 18 automaticati g propelledupon an elevated line and adapted to be returned to the point ofstarting at a predetermined time.

The invention contemplates a carrier provided with a spring motor andcombining therewith a reversing mechanism adapted to be automaticallyactuated or manually operated according to the existing conditions, themotor having a time mechanism which may be set to trip the reversingmechanism so as to start the carrier on its return trip s. given time.

The invention consists of the novel features, details of constructionand combination of parts, which hereinafter will be more particularlyset forth, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out inthe appended claims.

Referring to the drawings, forming, a part of the application, Figure 1is a perspective view of a carrier system embodying the invention. Fig.2 is a top plan view of the spring motor and time mechanism, showing thereversing mechanism in horizontal section. Fig. 3 is a side view of thespring motor. 'Fig. 4 is a front View of the time mechanism and themeans coiiperating therewith for automatically releasing the reversingmechanism from the stronger spring. Fig. 5 is a detail view of the partsillustrated in Fig. 4:, showing the lever tripped. Fig. 6 is a sectionalview on the line 66, looking to the left. Fig. 7 is a top plan view ofthe trip wheel, the lever cotiperating therewith and the rod to whichthe stronger spring is attached. Fig. 8 is a top plan view of the partsshown in Fig. 7

around sprocket having the rod released. Fig. 9 is a detail section onthe line 9--9 of Fig. 8, looking to the left. Fig. 10 is a detailsection of the trip wheel, showing the notch in the outer side thereof.Fig. 11 is a detail view in end elevation of the casing containing themotor and the parts associated therewith for driving the carrier.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription, and indicated in all'the views of the drawings, by the samereference characters.

The carrier is indicated by the letter A and comprises a box 1, or likereceptacle, for receiving the mail, parcels, or other matter to thetransported, and a casing 2 containing the motor, the time and thereversmechanisms. Access is had to the box eptacle 1 by means of asuitably ar- 5 door 3, which may be fastened in any :anner. Theoperating mechanism is housed within the casing 2, which is locatedabove the box or receptacle 1 for conven ience,

said casing being pointed at opposite ends so as to ofifer the smallestamount of resistance to the passage of the carrier through the air.Hangers 4 and 5 support the carrier and are provided with grooved wheels6 and 7 at their upper ends arranged to travel upon an elevated track orline 8 consisting of a cable or wire. The lower ends of the hangers 4and 5 are connected with the carrier by means of swivel joints, therebyavoiding strain. One of the supporting wheels is utilized as a driver topropel the carrier. A sprocket wheel 9 has connection with the wheel 6selected as the driver and the force for propelling the carrier isapplied to the sprocket wheel 9 by means of a sprocket chain 10, whichpasses wheels 12 and 13 secured upon shafts 14 and 15, which are mountedin a frame 16 adapted to have a movement imparted thereto, whereby powermay be applied directly to one or the other of the shafts 1 1 or 15. Theshaft-14 has a friction wheel 17 secured thereto and the shaft 15 has afriction wheel 18 fastened thereto. The friction wheels 17 and 18 arelocated so as to aline and to engage with the rim 19 of a friction wheel20. The rim 19 of the friction wheel 20 incloses the friction wheel 17and a portion is arranged between the adjacent parts of the frictionwheels 17 and 18. Movement of the frame 16 brings one or the other ofthe friction wheels 17 or 18 into engagement with the rim 19' of thefriction wheel 20, thereby driving the sprocket chain 10 in onedirection or the other according to the desired direction of travel ofthe carrier. t

The frame 16 may be mounted in any manner and for simplicity it is shownpivoted at 21 to a bracket 22 or like pa'iitab tached to the main frameor part ofthe casing 2. Springs 23 and 24 have connection with the frame16, said springs being of different tension, the spring 23 beingstronger than the spring 24. The springs 23 anc When the spring 23 isunder tension it overcomes the force of the spring 24 and moves theframe 16 so as to bring the friction wheel 18 into engagement with therim of the friction wheel 20, thereby driving the carrier in onedirection, but when the spring 23 is relieved of tension the spring 24comes into play and moves the frame 16 in the opposite direction andbrings the friction wheel 17 into engagement with the rim of thefriction wheel 20, thereby reversing the carrier or driving the sameinan opposite direction. The springs 23 and 24 may be connected to theframe 16 in any manner. A rod 25 is connected with the outer end of thespring 23 and is mounted in a suitable guide 26.

1 The motor embodies a frame 27 and a train of gearing mounted in theframe, said train of gearing embodying a spring driven shaft 28, agovernor shaft 29 and a power shaft 30. Any variety of governor may beconnected with the shaft 29. The power shaft 30 has the friction wheel20 secured thereto. The power shaft 30 is driven in one direction only.The provision and arrangement of the friction wheels 17, 18 and 20results in driving the axle positively in either direction upon thetrack or elevated line 8. lVhen the carrier reaches the end of the linein one direction its movement is arrested by means of a stop 31, whichis yieldable to prevent shock. Upon reversing the operating mechanism bymoving the frame 16 the carrier is driven so as to re turn upon the lineto the place of starting, its motion being arrested when the carrierreaches the end of the line and comes in contact with a stop or bufferarranged to arrest its movement.

The carrier may be reversed by hand or automatically by means of atime.mechanism. The rod 25 has a hook or stop 32,

which is adapted to engage one end of alever 33,which is mounted upon afulcrum pin 34. The lever 33 is mounted to turn and to move axially onthe pin 34 and is pressed inward b .means of a spring'35, which ismounte' upon the fulcrum pin and confined between the lever 33- and' a24: are preferably of the helical type and are adapted to be subjectedto tension.

heal'd or shoulder formed on said ffulcrinn pin. A- release lever 36 ispivoted at its inn'r end and has a short arm 37, which i frame 16 tobring the friction wheel 17 into engagement with the friction wheel 20to 3 reverse the carrier. The lever 33 has ger 38 projecting at. a rightangle -there'-' from and adapted toengag'e a trip wheel 39, which ismounted upon the part ofthe time mechanism carrying the hour hand 40 soas to rotate therewith. The-trip wheel 39 has'a groove 41. in .its outeredge to receive the end of the finger 38 so as to prevent lateraldisplacement thereof when moving thelever 33 laterally. by means of thelever 36 to effect disengagement of the rod 25 therefroxm A notch 42 is"formed ina' side of the trip wheel 39 and its inner wall inclinesto'form a.v cam for-the ,finger 38- to ride upon so as to move the innerend of the lever 33 laterally to clear the trip wheel so that the timemechanism may "continue to operate. The outer end of the notch 42communicates with the groove 41- and when 7 said notch registerswiththefinger 38 the latter enters said notch and at the same time is movedlaterally to clear the walls of the notch. lVhen .th-e finger 38 entersthe 1 notch 42 the outer end of the lever 33 moves so as to release therod 25, which *is drawn toward .the frame 16 by means of'the spring 23,the latter being at the same time relieved of all tension. When thecarrier is started from one end of the line the rod, 25 is drawn awayfrom the frame 16, thereby subjecting the spring 23 to tension andmoving the frame 16 against the tension of the lighter spring 245, saidrod 25 being held in the adjusted position by engaging the hook or stop32 thereof with the outer end of the lever 33.- spring the carrier isdriven upon the line to the oppositeend thereof by the means'hereindisclosed. When the carrier reaches the opposite end-of the fine itsmovement is arrested by'imeans of the stop '31 and upon releasing therod'25 either by tomatically by the mechanism the spring 23 is relievedo-f'tension and'the frame 16 is moved by the spring'24, therebyreversing the carrier which is returned to the place of starting. I

The time mechanism com'prises a frame 43, wh'ich supports. the timemovement. A dial 44 is movable and is adapted it) be-seE cured in theadjusted position by a set screw 45, or like fastening. An indicatingpoint 46 is provided upon the frame 43, the same Upon winding the motorhand or auset for its return it is being arranged opposite the finger 38of the lever 83. The trip wheel 39 has the hour hand 40 connectedthereto and is movable upon the shaft of the movement usuallg receivingthe bands which cooperate wit the dial to indicatethe time. p

is to be returned at a given time the dial 44 isset so that the requiredtime comes opposite. the indicator 4:6 and the trip wheel 39 is moved sothat the hour hand 40 will point to the time upon the dialcorresponding. with that at which the carrier, is started out-on itstrip, I When the carrier reaches the end'of the line its movementwill'be' arrested and in the event of the reversing'mechanism not beingtripped by hand it will be automatically operated by the time mechanismwhen the hour hand reaches the hour indicated upon the dial. When thehour hand reaches a point opposite the indicator LG the notch 42 of thetrip and the latter entering the notch results in a reversing of thecarrier in the manner stated. Should the party at the receiving end ofthe line desire to return the carrier earlier than the time onlynecessary to operate the lever 36, thereby releasing the rod 25 andadmitting the spring 24 tocome into play to actuate the reversingmechanism in the manner stated.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, the advantages of the construction and of themethodvof operation will be readily apparent to those skilled in the artto which the invention appertains, and while we have described theprinciple of operation of the invention, togetherwith .now consider tobe the embodiment thereof, we desire to have it understood that thedevice shown is'merely illustrative, and that such changes may be madewhen'desired as are within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

, Having thus described the invention what is claimed as new, is':-

1. In combination a line, a carrier mounted upon the line, a springmotor mounted upon the carrier, power transmitting means between'thespring motor and line, a reversing mechanism, and springs ofdifi'erenttension acting upon the reversing mechanism, the strongerspring when under tension overcoming the tension of the weaker spring tohold the reversing mechanism in position for applying the driving owerfor propelling the carrier in one direction and the weaker spring cominginto play whenthe stronger spring is relieved of tension to operatethereversing mechanism to drive the carrier in an opposite direction toreturn the same to the place of starting.

2..In combination a carrier, a spring motor for driving the carriermounted thereon,

, said motor embodying able frame, two wheels mounted upon the 1 movableframe for't-ransmitting power from When the carrier relieving thestrongenspring wheel 39 is brought in register with the finger 38 thedevice which we.

a drive wheel, a movthe drive wheel, springs of different tensionarranged to exert a orcefor 'moving the frame in opposite directions,the stronger spring when under tension overcoming the force of theweaker spring, and means for of tension to permitthe'weaker 5 ring tocome into play to move the frame or reversing the motor to drive thecarrier in the opposite direction.

In combination a carrier,

including a drive wheel, a movable frame, a reversing mechanism mountedupon said movable frame and adapted to 0060 erate with said drive wheel,springs of di erent tension normally exerting a force to move said framein opposite directions, means for holding the stronger of the springsunder tension, and means for releasing the stronger spring to permit theweaker spring to come into play to shift the movable frame and reversethe movement of the carrier.

4. In combination a carrier, nism therefor including a drive wheel, amovable frame, reversing mechanism mounted upon the movable frame andadapted to cooperate with the said drive wheel, springs of different theframe to move the same in opposite d1- rections, means for holding thestronger spring under tension, a manually operable device for releasingthe said spring tensioning means, and automatic means for releasing thes ring tensioning means independently of the manually operable means.

5. In combination a carrier, drive mecha-. nism therefor includingadrive wheel, a movable frame, reversing mechanism mount ed upon themovable frame and adapted to cooperate with the said drive wheel,springs of different tension exerting a force upon the'frame to move thesame in opposite directions, a rod connected with the stronger spring, alever for engaging said rod to hold the spring connected therewith undertension, and a releasing lever for disengaging said rod from the-holdinglever. a

6. In combination a carrier, drive mecha- Y nism therefor including adrive wheel, a. movable frame, reversing mechanism mounted upon themovable frame and adapted to cotiperate with the said drive wheel,springs of different tension exerting a force upon the frame to move thesame in opposite directions, a rod connected with the stronger drivemechaspring, a lever for engaging said rod to hold the spring connectedtherewith under tension, a movable trip wheel for holding the lever inoperative position and having a cutaway portion to admit of the leverautomatically releasing the said rod, and means operating mechanismmounted upon the carrier an tension e xertinga force upon Y tor and linefor propelling the carrier infor automatically bringing theportion ofthe trip wheel into a definite position to effect release of the saidrod to relieve the stronger spring of all tension. 4

7. In combination an elevated line, a carrier mounted to travel uponsaid line, a spring motor mounted upon the carrier, power transmittingmeans between the moeration to effect a return of the carrier to theplace of starting. v

9. In combination acarrier,'driving mechanism therefor, powertransmitting means including 'a reversing mechanism, a rod for holdingthe reversing mechanism in one po sition, a lever for engaging said rodmounted toh'ave both a pivotal and alateral movement, and means formoving the'last mentioned lever laterally substantially as and for thepurpose specific eluding a reversing mechanism; means exerting opposedforces of different strength upon the reversing mechanism, and means forautomaticallyreleasing the stronger of the forces to admit of the weakerforce coming into play for throwing the reversing mechanism into activeoperation.

8.v In combination a line, a carrier mounted to travel upon the line, aspring motor mounted upon, the carrier and'embodying a friction wheelhaving a laterally extending rim, a movable frame, two friction wheelsmounted upon the movable frame and having'a portion of the rim of themotor driven friction wheel coming between them, means for transmittingpower from the two friction wheels mounted upon the mova-ble framethrough the drive wheel of the carrier mounted upon the line, springs ofdif-; ferent 1tension I(Zach adapted to exert a force tures in presenceoftwowitnesses. upon tie mova le frame to throw one of the two frictionwheels into engagement with the rim of the friction drive Wheel, a rod Xmechanism therefor,

power transmitting means lncludmg a the inner wall clined to efl'ecment.

connected with the stronger spring, a lever Witnesses: 7 for engagingsaid rod to hold the stronger C. M. MESSERLY, spring under tension, andmanually operable E. M NAHAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

' Washington. D. C. V

cutaway I and automatic means for releasing said rod l to bring thereversing mechanism into op- 10.- In combination a carrier, driving '5".reversing mechanism, arod for holding the reversing mechanisnr'iir" oneposition, a-levcr for engaging said rod mounted to have both a pivotaland a lateral movement, said l'ever having a finger pro- -jectingtherefi om aboutat a right angle," and a trip wheel toengage said fingerand having a portion cut'from one side having bf the cutaway portion iualateral movement of the lever simultaneously with its pivotal move-- Intestimony ,whereof we aflix our signa-

